Football notebook: Puleo packs power in small frame

WALLKILL — No matter if Wallkill slot back Sean Puleo is coming around the corner on a run, or charging up field in space, defenders in his grill expect him to try to elude them with a quick move.

JUSTIN RODRIGUEZ

WALLKILL — No matter if Wallkill slot back Sean Puleo is coming around the corner on a run, or charging up field in space, defenders in his grill expect him to try to elude them with a quick move.

However, Puleo often surprises them, putting them on their back. Not many linebackers or defensive backs expect to get bull-rushed by Puleo, who is 5-foot-5.

Once he lowers his shoulder, opponents get the idea, Puleo can bring it. He is a candidate to make a big play when Wallkill hosts rival Cornwall in a Section 9 Class A showdown at 7 p.m. Friday. Cornwall (5-0, 2-0 Class A) defeated Wallkill 28-14 for last year's Class A title. The Panthers (4-1, 3-0 Class A) had won three games in a row against Cornwall.

"Nobody really expects me to put my shoulder down," said Puleo, a junior. "I use that to my advantage. If I have to hit someone, I'll hit someone. When I lay a hit on someone, it feels good. But it's nothing personal."

Puleo weighs just 150 pounds, but he's thick, and doesn't lack confidence. Wallkill uses him out of the backfield and as a wide receiver. He's also a dangerous return man — the ultimate so-called gadget player.

"I think people underestimate Sean," said running back Josh Villafane. "But if you underestimate Sean, he will put his head down and run you over."

Forget about Section 9. No quarterback in the state could be as hot as Cornwall junior Mike White.

In his last three games, against Monticello, Red Hook and Saugerties, White's thrown for 596 yards with 12 touchdowns and no interceptions. He played only the first half in all three games.

"I'm feeling great right now," White said. "Obviously, we're on a roll, the offensive line, my receivers, everyone. It hasn't been against the best teams, but they are still good. It's nice to be in a groove."

White has completed 53-of-83 passes (63.9 percent) for 967 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions this year. Meanwhile, first year Wallkill quarterback Joe Pillitteri, a junior, has performed well for the Panthers. He has thrown for 935 yards with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions this year.

For good measure, Minisink Valley put away Washingtonville, off to one of its hottest starts in school history, 26-13 last week to take control of Section 9 Class AA Division II. For some, it's been a shocking turn of events.

Not to Minisink Valley coach Kevin Gallagher.

Gallagher brings up some good points in defending the Warriors (3-2, 2-0 Class AA). Minisink Valley, 4-5 last season, installed a new offense and defense this fall. The Warriors lost two key players — RB/DB John Tobin and RB/LB Tim Vance — to knee injuries earlier this fall. Minisink Valley struggled with mistakes and turnovers earlier in the year.

"I think everyone on the team was like enough is enough. We are too good to let this happen," Gallagher said. "I always believed we were a good team."

Minisink Valley's rebirth has produced one of the best stories in Section 9. Junior Kyle Gainer began the year as a scout running back. However, a rash of injuries combined with Gainer's development, prompted Gallagher to put him in the backfield.

"Kyle showed me he wanted it and he's played at a high level," Gallagher said. "I think he's only going to get better and better."

Warwick senior running back Matt Weaver is expected to miss his second straight game with a concussion, according to offensive coordinator Aaron Hasbrouck.

Warwick (3-2) hosts Roosevelt (2-3) in a Class AA Division II game at 7 p.m. Friday. Weaver, who has rushed for 625 yards and seven touchdowns this season, sustained the injury in a 29-0 loss to Minisink Valley on Sept. 21.

With Weaver out, Hasbrouck and Warwick coach James Sciarra installed the wildcat formation in last week's 20-14 non-league win over Kingston. Star wide receiver Brad Garcia shifted to the backfield to anchor the formation with new quarterback Brendan Bauer, only a sophomore. Bauer replaced Brendan Waters, who was moved to the secondary.

The wildcat formation is used to capitalize on mismatches created by the shifting of skill players. In the scheme, popularized by Tim Tebow, the quarterback is replaced in the backfield by a running back who takes a direct snap from the center.

"It was kind of cool to be in the wildcat," said Garcia, a Varsity845 first-team wide receiver last year. "I hadn't played running back since eighth-grade, but it felt natural. I feel like it was a positive and we can still make a run to the playoffs."

Hasbrouck said Weaver could return next week against Valley Central.

Pine Bush has royalty battling in the trenches for it every week — the "Caribbean King." That would be senior two-way lineman Delano King. He earned his nickname from Pine Bush defensive coordinator Mike McDonald.

King moved from the island of St. Vincent's in the Caribbean to the U.S. when he was in fifth grade. In St. Vincent's, King played cricket. He started playing football in seventh grade and said the sport help his body transform.

Before football, King weighed 290 pounds, and said he was pudgy. He is now 6-3, 275 pounds. King has 38 tackles this year and has been a key blocker for Pine Bush's run-based offense.

"I like the nickname a lot," King said. "It obviously goes with my name. Coach Mike sort of named me it and it has stuck. I guess it works."

Pine Bush (4-1, 2-1 Class AA) hosts Newburgh (4-1, 1-0 Class AA) in a key Division I game at 1 p.m. Saturday. A Pine Bush loss would likely eliminate the Bushmen from Class AA playoff contention. Pine Bush lost to Monroe-Woodbury 24-7 in a Division I game last week after trailing 10-7 at halftime.

A week ago, James I. O'Neill, the defending Class C champs, looked like a lock for the playoffs.

However, after last week's 26-21 Division I loss to John S. Burke Catholic, O'Neill could be one loss away from elimination. O'Neill faces, perhaps, its biggest game of the year against the hottest team in Class C — Dover of Dutchess County.

In its first year in Section 9, Dover (5-0, 1-0 Class C Division I) is averaging 43 points per game. O'Neill is 4-1, 2-1 Class C.

"I feel like if we stay confident and focused we will be fine," said O'Neill running back Jerry Nasi, who has rushed for 734 yards and 16 touchdowns this year. "We know we are in a tough position, but what are you going to do. We shouldn't have put ourselves in this position in the first place and now we just have to pull through."